Kyrillos Keynote Speaker at Law Day Celebration

            Senator Joseph Kyrillos (R-13) was the keynote speaker for the Monmouth Vicinage Law Day Celebration held recently at the Chancery Courtroom in Freehold Borough.

     In his speech, Senator Kyrillos referred to United States Chief Justice John Roberts, who compared law and baseball. "If law is like baseball, then legislators are the rule-makers," Kyrillos stated to the crowd of lawyers and school children. "But we are rule-makers who answer directly to our constituents--to the people whom we represent. That’s the heart of American Democracy."  

     This year's theme was the "Rule of Law" and marked the 50th anniversary of Law Day-- declared by President Eisenhower as a national day to celebrate the rule of law and the legal process.

     "By analogy, imagine what baseball would be without rules," Kyrillos continued. "Without laws--without rules agreed to in advance and known to the players--there can be no fairness or impartial justice. There can be no reliable expectations. A ball could be declared a strike, and a strike declared a ball."

     Kyrillos went on to talk about the recent high number of public officials who have been arrested or convicted of corruption charges.

     "We can and we should expect nothing less than the highest level of integrity in our public officials--and New Jersey residents should demand it," Kyrillos stated. "It is a credit to our system of justice that no American is above the rule of law."

     In attendance were Monmouth County officials, area residents and student winners of the 2008 essay and art contest sponsored by the Monmouth Vicinage Advisory Committee on Minority Concerns. Chief Justice Stuart Rabner of the New Jersey Supreme Court also delivered remarks via videotape.

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